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Hope to see ya all soon. Coming from So Cal. I may have an extra spot as our friends (#073) may not make it. I'll post again real soon

Update for anyone out there wondering. The trailer is in the shop at Bretz RV in WA. Truma needed the issues confirmed by a certified rep, of course. They thought it was part A, and it was confirmed to be part A. However, the shop reached out to order part A, and Truma is saying they don't sell just that part, so now there is a debate about whether we have to buy a new furnace! The warranty is 2 years, and the trailer was built in 2023, so that is nice that it recently expired. At this point, no idea when we will get her back, and we have a departure date of next Saturday for a long long trip. urgh.

Some things I’ve found out that will be of interest, a lot of it from consulting with various AI’s which have gotten really good and more reliable than humans Trailer Cover I’ve debated getting a cover, but that’s more for the traditional trailers with leak prone seams that need protecting. Other than cost and difficulty to get on/off there’s a ‘greenhouse effect’. I’m seeing it now, I’ve got a tarp on the roof to keep morning dew off while the graphene cures. Already in the morning that inside ceiling gets hot. A cover bakes the trailer, better to graphene coat and no cover which lets moisture evaporate and radiate heat UV Protection What about preventing chalking? Hands down SiO2 without or without graphene is the best solution. Gel coat is rather porous, providing a perfect base for the coating to adhere to and it perfectly seals and prevents basically 100% UV protection. Just make sure to refresh it every few years, depending on use and climate it can last up to eight Graphene This is an additive to a regular SiO2 coating and solvent. By itself it can’t coat, but as a dopant it greatly improves the performance in many ways Which brand? Glidecoat. Originally made for marine applications it’s Elite level protection for your Oliver. Additionally its rated multi-surface, get the 30’ kit and you’ll have plenty to coat all the aluminum too, and probably much of your truck Why? Basically its the best protection for this trailer other than garaging it. Even then it’ll be easier to travel, you want to get bug guts off, droppings and sap because they eat the gelcoat. But after this treatment they just wipe off. Looks great too. And its cheaper than the alternatives. Garaging is expensive (and rare out West) and you want protection on the road anyhow. CalMark covers are near $2k and a pain, and this only requires minimal upkeep and maintenance. Total cost and tools was around $1k + sweat equity, or you can have CGI do it. Application The CGI Detailing is the best method, which is roughly Do a deep, deep clean For heavily oxidized trailers use a rotary polisher and heavy cutting compound Then (and for trailers in good condition) use an orbital polisher working in 2x2 or 3x3 squares with Inox Cutmax, four dots on a particular pad. Three passes, Wipe off Go to 6-4 polishing compound, same method IPA wipe off, two towel method Coat Lots of particular details here that are important, highlights Moisture must be managed. The solvent uses humidity to cure, but actual moisture will ruin it. Working outside is fine - I’m doing it - but I time it to periods during the day and cover the trailer at night for the first 48 hours to avoid morning dew and be out of the sunlight so it doesn’t flash off too quickly. Don’t wash the trailer with soap for at least a week. Do two coats, three doesn’t add anything In general use a two towel method and rotate pads. It took me two days do the roof, partly because I think it’s on the ladder so lots of moving that around, fiddling with the odd areas, and getting used to it. Next I’m taking three days to do the sides and back. First day to compound, second to polish and coat one side, final day to do the other side. Much easier outside as can pop the awnings to avoid any sun. Then finally I’ll take two days to do the front as that’s the most important

@Dennis and Melissa Meaher State Park, Alabama A sunset view from a site close to where you took yours. Mossey

@Dennis and Melissa What is the area code for Barker?

Dennis, PM me with your address and I’ll put a brand new original in the mail to you. 😎 Barker is great. I purchased two reconditioned heads for our rears and they came with new plastic covers, switches, etc. which of course you don’t need when replacing the rears. It would be my pleasure!

Thanks to both of you. Ordering tomorrow and will let you know how it goes. Hooray for the Oliver community once again!

Those are momentary motor reversing switches (spring return to center). Don't get a latching switch! A knock-off version is available from Amazon https://a.co/d/01EAzrSv . They are okay. Amazon includes the waterproof rubber cap, but many suppliers don't. No worries because they are available at ACE hardware and auto part stores. You can also use a center off or momentary Double Throw Double Pole DPDT switch in an emergency, but you would have to make your own jumpers as can be seen in your picture. Judging from the jumper wire in your picture, it looks like your switch was wired with the power leads going to the center terminals. That jumper wire is power for the lamp switch, and it's doubled up with the +12v power wire for the jack. Normally the power wires are on the outer terminals per the Barker jack wiring diagrams, but it makes no difference electrically. The lamp -12v wire is spliced to the jacks ground. Your jack motor leads go to the outer terminals (polarity is not important yet). With wires hooked up, look at the position of the notch or flat side of the switch threads for correct alignment with the jack housing. Then try the switch to verify that the jack is going the right direction. Just reverse the motor leads on the switch to change direction if needed. Use a piece of heat shrink over all the switches terminal spades. This prevents shorts, but more importantly it helps hole the spade terminals from coming off. Sometimes it's also necessary to pinch the wire terminals for better grip on the switch spades. Hope that is not too confusing! Cheers, Geoff

This one off Amazon should work fine and you shouldn't have to do any rewiring. Waterproof Reverse Polarity Switch

I just got off the phone with Oliver technical support They gave me a Barker number 736-2300 which appears completely legit However, getting that part is going to be tricky given our travel schedule. There’s an off-the-shelf six pin replacement that should work that I can buy for 10 bucks just about anywhere. But then I have to do some wiring myself. I think I know what needs to be done, but I’ve never done it before. It could be a bit tricky.

I need to buy a new one of these Can someone who speaks electric tell me what it’s called so I can buy one on Amazon? I think it’s some variation of “double throw momentum”. But not sure how to specify the exact one Thanks

We use Progressive, but not the online application. Find a local independent agent, I applied online years ago and costs were double. Was with GEICO for 10+ years, but they became extremely annoying. We run full coverage when we're traveling and then when I know we'll be parked at home for a few months, a request to my agent and he changes coverage to COMP only which saves about half the cost for that period of time. We own more cars and trucks than drivers in the household, so we always have 1-2 vehicles on comp coverage only. I had to file a car accident with Progressive recently. They want you to use their app, take pics and a movie showing the damage. In a few days they reply with a settlement and set it up to pay you electronically. Same day I had money transferred. Then it's up to you to get quotes where you want it fixed. If quotes are more $$$ then you'd have to communicate with an adjuster for approvals. Given you'd prefer to go to OTT that should be OK with most insurance companies. They likely would not pay travel expenses, so the Oliver would have to be cross-country towable to get it there or transportation costs may be exorbitant! Ours is insured for stated value equal to the actual cash we paid for our used Oliver plus all (documented) upgrade costs kept in a spreadsheet. When buying new you have a current receipt for cost paid, but without a stated-value policy, if totaled they will deduct depreciation as they see it. Congrats on your new Oliver Apex, it's only 3 weeks away! 😎

@Hokieman Not sure what to explain in regards to the shackles and wet bolts being heavier duty than Dexter parts. They simply appears bigger/larger. Once you get over the fact that the wet bolts could possible spin over time due to no spines in the shackles, all is well, I guess. As to why Oliver is using Dexter parts with Alcan springs, I'm not sure. If they are, I can only think of a few reasons why: They have tons of Dexter spare parts and want to use them up & save $$$. Or they are making a less than desirable decision to save $$ and use Dexter parts with Alcan springs. 🤷‍♂️ The parts will be fine I'm sure. Most of those bolts & shackles had held up pretty well. Oh sure, a few reports of broken ones over the years, but only time will tell with pure Alcan parts. Again, a business does not stay in business since 1971 if they make crap parts, I would think. Us men can be so darn anal detailed oriented with our data-point comparisons that it surely creates super long threads. 🤣. It's like our chess games but with RV parts. 😉 I spend much of my time in recent years ensuring I know how to retire and if I did a good enough job with the portfolio (I think so). And now whether or not I want to go thru a full RV Tech school to have a better foundation, or simply goof-off in early retirement. Decisions, decisions.

If you get in an accident and it causes $10K damage to your trailer, immediately get in another to total it. Just kidding. Best of luck. FWIW, we use Progressive.

Take a look at Good Sam Insurance.Agency.

Sounds interesting

With our delivery date on the horizon we are currently looking at insurance options. We have already received quotes from USAA/Progressive and Geico and waiting on a call from American Adventure Insurance. Our biggest concern is how any insurance company will respond if the Apex were to be damaged and who the insurance adjuster would assign to handle the repairs of the fiberglass and/or frame and how much push back we could possibly get from requesting it to be repaired by Oliver, of course, reading the entire policy to include the small print might give a little more insight when answering that question; however, any thoughts, recommendations, or suggestions would be welcomed especially from those that have had damage to the frame and fiberglass. We searched the forum and have read what was available. TIA. Hull #1738 in the making, delivery date September 14, 2026.

I’m graphene coating the Oliver, just completed the roof. Basically following the CG Detailing method, which they graciously provide if you dig for it. They don’t come out West so I need to DIY which is a ton of work but satisfying. If there’s any interest I’ll provide details and tips

tried them, via his eBay listing, but will try him direct. Major RV parts company bought Norcold and supposedly re-manufacturing parts again, just can't get a sense of target date or computer is just showing backorder, with big void behind that.

I second the PITA! I did figure out on our recent trip I can fold the mattress from front to back (with bedding in place) and the frame on the window blinds will hold it in place while I get into the front compartment.

A little hot, but beautiful.

Check with Tim's RV in Erving, MA They boght a lot of parts from companies going out of business or stopping making models.

Nova Kool Left-Hinge Availability? Due to the lack of Norcold replacement parts, membrane control panel in my case, I may be doing a fridge replacement. If you replaced yours with a Nova Kool, where did you source it? I’ve found few in stock, but more critically they are all right-hand hinge. Left-side hinge models are 4-6 week order time from the factory. My tech and I, along with ChatGPT, have search with no luck for both the membrane and board, and for the Nova Kool left-hinge.

On all the models? Last I saw it was mentioned only for the Apex. Yeah as I talked about on the other thread, watching the suspension in action for a good hour its pretty obvious that while the 1750's are sufficient, they're not adequate. They're working but it looks like there's no extra margin, hit a good bump and they quickly bottom out.